Nigerian Scam overfills online dating communities
The popularity of online dating has caused an increase in dating scams. Perhaps the most known is the Nigerian dating scam. Singles looking for love online should be on the look out for this scam. Nigerian scams are often not easy to detect. Indeed, the Nigerian scam artist is a whole different breed. For one, he (or she) is usually of a higher education level, often a college or university graduate or higher. Secondly, they do their homework. Thirdly, they can be exceptionally patient. Plus, some of them could rival an Oxford English professor in language prowess, especially written language.
The scammer posts a fake profile on a dating site, and often multiple dating sites. Chat rooms and social networking sites are also often targeted, as well as Christian and other religion-based dating sites.
Scammers seem to prefer using white people images, apparently cashing in on certain perceptions and stereotypes. The photograph is usually magazine cover quality, and of an exceedingly individual. The photographs are usually stolen from modeling agencies. They also use pictures of foreign models and celebrities not known in the target country. Photographs from other dating profiles have also been known to be used. In a way, the people whose images are used in these scams are victims as well.
Often, scammers prefer to use female photo profiles. Lots of men will respond to an attractive woman’s personal ad, based on a picture alone. This is not to say that women don’ get scammed. They do get scammed, by men or by other women depending on the person’s sexual orientation. In most cases, scammers target older (middle-aged) people seeking long term relationships. At this age the person is likely to be desperate therefore gullible and this age group is likely to be financially stable. Contact is initiated, often but not always, by the scammer.
The stage is set and now begins the grooming phase. The grooming phase is when the relationships and trust are built. The scammer claims to be a business executive or some type of expert from the US, Canada or the UK (or other country) temporarily working for his company in Nigeria or other African country. The fraudster knows all the right things to say and will put you on a pedestal. Before long, you are in the greatest romance journey of your life. Or so you think. Soon he/she declares love. He/she might even send you a few romantic gifts, bought with stolen credit cards. Once a trusting bond has been established, you are ripe for picking. This can take up to twelve months (talk of patience) and often there is promise of marriage. Then the scammer asks for a big favor. The scammer claims that his employer has been paying him in money orders or cashiers checks, which due to differences in banking systems he cannot cash in Nigeria (or other country). The victim is asked to cash the money orders or checks and then wire the money to the scammer via Western Union or Moneygram. He/she might be asked to keep a portion of the money for his/her troubles. This serves a dual purpose: it helps build trust and also turns the victim into a beneficiary and participant in the scam. The money orders or checks will turn out fraudulent. It usually takes most banks anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks to clear a check or money order. The scammer is counting on this, and by the time the con is exposed he/she has disappeared, leaving you to pay the bank and/or even face prosecution for participating in the fraud.
Nigerian dating scam does not always involve money, however. Some scammers are out to use your name and address to ship goods bought with stolen credit cards. The goods are first shipped to you, and then you are asked to reship to the scammers chosen destination which is usually in Nigeria. Though most forms of communication are used, including email, Instant Messaging, and Chat, the scammer will shun live video chat. This is because the photographs used are not real.
The excuse often is lack of the technology in Nigeria. The scammer can usually hire a voice of the right gender, and even accent, for a phone conversation. As a final point, just because it’s called Nigerian romance scam does not necessarily mean it’s done in or out of Nigeria. Due to mistrust of anything involving Nigeria, con artists have started operating from other countries of West Africa such as Ghana and Benin.
Category: Dating Scams
Actually the worst scammers for
free datingsites come from Senegal. But they use the Nigerian scam method.
Recently my sister has been corrospnding with a african in the UK he claims to be a importer and wishes to send a parcel to her whilst on a business trip which he will pick up when in Australia. He has a UK phone no.
Unfortunatley its difficult to convince her now that this is a scam. This person came from a christian dating site.
It seems obvious that this person is in the UK.
Watch out for Afrointroductio ns. That website is a favorite for Internet scammers. Although there are some profiles of those who are genuine and looking for love, the majority are scammers using false profiles and photographs of innocent people unawares.
well i all i can say here i s that poeple make use of this country but there are lot of scamming going on in Nigeria, even though that i still love Nigeria. and what you say about the Russian and Ukraine and some other African country like Ghana, Benin etc
Does anybody have any proof that this georgpa01live.com is a bad guy at all. Id like to know what he is telling people about where he is and what he does or anything else about his life. do you have a picture of this guy at all. Please let me know Ardene
I suspect my son is involved in a nigerian scam with amadapattison@y ahoo.com. She claims to be a Christian missionary in Nigeria. She too started by asking his opinion of different aspects of marriage, trust, faith, etc. Within a few days they were calling each other babe and love. She has already asked for money after a week of emailing. He will not listen to my suspicion of a scam, and believes he will marry her. I think he will never see the money again. Any suggestions?
Trace the originating IP address. Not too difficult, and will show where the emails are being sent from. Just search google on how to search it based on what email address it’s coming from (yahoo, hotmail, gmail, etc.)
Joel Daniels aka George Carsey G_carsey1959yahoo.com big scammer. Meets you on single sites, great looking guy, sweet talks you real smooth until he gets the money he wants. Fell for this, don’t you. If you get involved with guy, PLEASE contact me.
I have received all the same correpondance on Mate1 site as well,inheritanc e money to be sent to your address,just need money to pay security charge or plane ticket to meet you first.They never come on video,they never give you proof of anything,at least nothing concrete!They say they are from the U.S but write broken English and can’t spell very good,…if you see the word “cos” in any mail i beleive this is a Nigerian posing as the American “poor greiving scammer” you will know this scammer fairly quickly as they put the word “cos”in every paragraph,…the real spelling is “because” this is not short form or slang guys,beware she’s good! Send comments back,i am interested how you all made out,”cos” i’m curious 🙂
Anyone knows this guy called Kris White, with email add kriswhite59@yah oo.com. I think he is a scam artist. Supposedly lives in England but travels to US often. If you need to get more infor email me. He has send me pics of himself but I don’t think its him. Here’s my email airplain001gmail.com
Ladies,
Beware, Lt Col George Patterson is back on facebook, with a picture. Look him up at georgepa01live.com
Even though I told this scammer I knew what he is doing, he is still calling me 5-9 times in the middle of the night every night, I have tried every block the phone company knows and he can get around it, so I am changing my number. his id on match.com is singlemike51@yahoo he uses the name Michael Williams. Forgive me for not posting my e-mail, but I am never giving that to anyone again.
Ok, the fact of the matter is, there are scammers on just about all online dating sites.
The best way to get rid of them quickly is tell them you have some special software on your computer that you ordered from the FBI. Tell them about its ability to pick up on certain scammers keywords and phrases. They will not only drop you like a hot potato, they will cancel their membership to the website you found them on. Plus, never delete any emails they send you. It is a relatively good paper trail. Unfortunately, I didn’t come up with this idea until I had been “almost” scammed 4 times. They left me with a broken heart that I am still trying to find the pieces of. Read their emails/love letters. You will be surprised to find out that you, as a woman have been talking to a woman all along,when you thought you were talking to the man of your dreams.
I suspect a scammer,usernam e “dammy johnson” at trustedmind001yahoo.com.She/he wants me to send money for airfare to come U.S. If you know of this person let me know.
I thought the e-mail would be attached. fdmeadoryahoo.com
Be careful of kjofcharm@yahoo .com she is in nigeria scamming americans.Says she is in san francisco a town called vallejo very pretty 5’9″ she almost got me but I saw the flags to soon.Says her name is Karen from the uk. Says her real name is Elaine Faceutt.Be ware.I will send you pictures of her upon your request.
Needless to say, we have all been approached at one time or another. Some of us more fortunate and not lost any money. We have the power to educate and inform. Here is a sampling of names…and if anyone would require their pictures, I have those as well.
Edgar Taylor – Houston edytay607@yahoo .com
Henrik Lamont – Winter Haven lamonthenrik@ya hoo.com
Samuel Smith engineertaxman@ yahoo.com
Mike Green sgtmikesgreen@l ive.com
(supposedly in the US Armed forces)
Good luck to everyone out there.
Claire, there is a name on this list I’d like to see photos for no money sent but I suspect and I’m uneasy.
Thanks for posting. 🙂
Watch out for 3 Nigerian Internet Dating fraudsters: Davinson Craig – Sgnt Eric Hughes – Lt Jerrfey Miller. All posing as Americans serving in Afghanistan and Pakistan. All Nigerian conmen or possibly the same person with 3 different log-ins. Do not send them money and sever all connection with them ASAP.
I hope this helps someone!
Beware of a scammer named Harry Ray Anderson.. his is a con-artist and a thief! Claims to be a 39-yr. old engineer from California doing business in Nigeria. Met him on my yearbook.com. He was scamming another woman at the same time as me.. she ended up giving him $2,000 of her money. He uses yahoo as his e-mail. WATCH OUT!!!!
Watch out for Danny Wilson 49 of Tennesee, but is actually a supposed engeneer working in Nigeria for 3 weeks- immediately willing to relocate for love. Has a gmail account dannywilson61gmail.com and yahoo is sweetdannytn something. What a drag that was…his photos were cute, too!
Mark Glaber from Seattle and Louis Nelson from Antelope, OR. God, I’ve only been a match member for a few days and I get [censored]ed in by these two scammers. Anytime someone references Nigeria or West Africa, run!
A guy with the name Richard Petermann
Also from the USA allegedly working for an Engineering firm in Nigeria. Dating scam. Wants money because ha cannot use his Mastercard in Nigeria… I told him my house burnt down… Idiot!!
I can identify myself to what has been written literally word for word, line for line.
I lost $8.5k to nigerian scammers in the manner described above while subscribed to Eharmony.
Match.com and Eharmony are really infested with scammers. Fake profiles are the norm for these sites.
The rapport building, in my case, lasted 6 months, then they had problem, then needed money. I was really naive and disgusted at myself.
The RED FLAGS/CLUES to look for are:
1. Say he/she loves you after one email and eager to give you her phone number. The reason he/she gives you the phone number is to give the impression that they are REAL.
2. Anything that has NIGERIA in it is a SCAM.
3. If money is asked, it is a scam.
4. Anything that is outside your city, especially, the other side of the world is a scam.
NIGERIANS ARE THE WORST OF LOWLIFES. THEY ARE REAL SCUMBAGS.
I always thought there may be a good one. Nope.
Nigerian government is doing nothing because it sees scammers as a source of foreign income.
The dating sites are doing nothing as they want more customers, don’t care if you die or not.
Western Union ain’t give a shit either.
The only thing we have is information sharing to prevent others from falling into the trap.
As the asian proverb goes, there will be justice in this life or the next, to all future generations who will know what suffering means because of their forebears’ sins. The loop will close when justice is done.
I hope the scammers choked on the food that they bought will ill-gotten money, had accidents and die in cars they bought with scammed money.
…and YES, I WAS SCAMMED and I know a few people who committed suicide.
Scammed by Robert Steadman, claimed to be an orphan from Healdsburg Ca. Said he was in Nigeria buying diamonds and would return in 3 weeks. He chatted me up with love talk, marriage talk, woman of my dreams talk. It wasn’t that much fun because he didn’t really relate to anything I said. His texting was a little broken. His picture was of a man probably in his early forties and pretty good looking. He said he was 55 though. I had a gut feeling and performed security scans on my computer several times a day for the 4 days we chatted. I ended it when he seemed overly interested in the name of my bank and what my house was worth. I told him not to contact me. I don’t know if the scammers can get any information from yahoo email yahoo messenger or cell phone number. Let’s hope not. I hope he gives up.
watch out 4 mark andrews. Persist i must giv him usd2500. I refused, bt even pushd i go make loan. Lost ticket money. Wants 2go home 2 usa frm Nigerian oil rig. Hav 17yr old daughtr. Ask 4 mariage aftr 1wk. Cals often beggng. SCAMMER! Hope he rots.
Do not trust anyone working in nigeria that says they are american. Why would an english speaking person look for love from there? It is a scammer.
There are a number of scammer info websites that state this info. Use google to find them. There are scammers that use united states, cananda and uk email addresses.
Search the email addresses and names on google. Please be careful ask many questions to your contact and never ever send money. If they do not appear “trustworthy” they are not.
Most of the the online dating websites have far to many scammers using them looking for targets to get money from. Look for sites that have people local to your area. Even then you need to be careful.
Beware of cuddlymark: baggiesoflove @ yahoo. Says he is working in Benin for Shell. Chatted for 3 weeks. Said his money transfer for his contracted job did not process. Said he was broke and he belly hurted because he was hunry. Wanted me to send an overdraft check so he could eat. LOL I thought he was a scam when he said he loved me in week 2. Never seen him in person(video chat). Just a nice looking picture of a greek man. he was on J list friends. I googled him and found same pic on Arab friends and dating. Would like to meet the man in the pic though. Not a Fd up Nigerian that scams women. My 1st scam and last scam. I did not send money only prayers and good luck. LOL He says he is from CA in the USA – name is Mark Bagshaw. Also, aked me to check a phony bank acct that had half a million dollars in it. that was in 10 days of chat. Did not impress me. It creepied me out. Why did he not use that money to eat? LOL
Like the woman above I have been almost [censored]ed in by two of these scammers at the same time. Be aware of lastdancewithlu v- supposedly a man named Chris Halloway and heartedrolland- Rolland Scott. Both claiming to be in my town but when asked about simple locations had no knowledge causing me, thankfully, to have doubts. No money sent but I did give my phone number making it very scary stuff.
Hi ladies, I am having the same problem with a male scammer who is using a phone number from Nigeria. Also, found this jerk on a date website. Made the mistake and gave him my ph number. A lot of these guys use Yahoo for their email addresses. I think that the comapny doesn’t give a rat ass about the safety of their customers. I was getting emails from this asshole scammer a few times a day. He said he was in one country, but on the emails he sent the time zone was from another country. What a stupid person he is. Ladies please beware of these low life no good users. They tell a good story up to the point where they are going to ask for money. If they threaten you verbally or suggest anything violent report them to your local police. The FBI will investigate and seek to get these [censored]ers. My friends are just waiting for this guy to come to the states and bother me. My guys friends want to beat him like the bitch he is for getting agressive with me.
i hear you i was talking to 4 scammers american engineers working abroad.gave me 4 diffrent international numbers.used my caller id all the same numbers one wanted to get married after two days.
Ladies please keep any and all emails, recorded calls, IM messages, chat messages. Print them out if you have to. They may protect you from further scammers, and the police love to have documented details of these people. They often work in groups, and end up creating a pattern of work. So don’t be surprised if you get rid one guy another one will try to make contact with you within weeks.
You are so right about being able to google anything about anybody. People cannot lie and hide themselves because of the access we have on the internet. I too have caught a number of men misleading themselves using online dating websites. I can find info regarding addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, employment, even prison records on search engines. Why do people think they can scam, cheat and lie. Once you go public on the internet it’s there for the world to see. Every time a dude gives me his name I google it. If you got any friends that work for a county or a federal job they can get more info if needed. Whoever is doing their “rant” on this site about their “name” should google it and see what the fuss is about. I googled mine and I don’t have any issues. I use romancescam.com all the time, and I found a number of pictures that are used by online dating scammers. Please becareful ladies.
I am commenting on a nigerian scamer by the name of jose l martins. He contacted me on a dating site and a lot of other women. Saying he is in nigera his father is sick and he want to come home to the united states but needs to borrow money. He is on facebook as jose l martins he has various email addresses. He sweet talks woman in emails and then gives them a sad story about his father. He has a pic on facebook of him and his suppose child named micheal. Beware women please. Oh he has a phone # of 234-816-742-7166. Email addresses are joselarry58@yah oo.com and larry4u2u@yahoo and josemartins42@yahoo.com
beware of a scammer from nigeria named alex tony
Be careful with Stg.ryangmail.com He says his name is Ryan Shope and that he is in Libia with the USA ARMY and he is asking for money to pay his kids nanny.
The chicks are bad too fellas. There is one that I’ve investigated across a few sites and claims to be very religious, username jennyuch, gives story about dead parents. Claims shes African, but never mentions Nigeria and operates in the states. Never talked on phone, rarely emails, didn’t talk much about herself..just me and then asks for a wire for over $650. They’re getting smarter, the wire was probably to another who would get scammed like me and he’d probably send it on. Hoping others find this via google, watch out.
Has anyone heard of a John Stuggart who claims that he is of British descent and living in Tampa but now working, guess where? Nigeria. Says he is single 42, never been married, very articulate and eloquent.
He’s a scammer. I met him on an online dating site about 2 years ago. Had the same story then too! Tried to get money, said he was sick and needed meds, but he wasn’t getting paid for a few more days, and his credit card wasn’t working. When that didn’t work, a few days later he said he was at the airport – about to fly to Tampa to see me – but his paperwork had been denied and needed money to get new passport, etc to get home. I called his bluff and told him never contact me again…
Caution if you use Worldfriends and Jlist friends, together they are the same website and are loaded with scammers from Benin, Lagos, Nigeria and other areas in west Africa. The scammer often says they are from the US or UK. Both parents killed in some tragic accident and have some kind of contracted business with an oil or construction company. Always google the name and email, if they are fake report to the website where they contacted you from.
beware of a good looking guy who happens to be nigerian, he loves himself so much, his large family of 1 sister and 7 brothers, mum and dad live in Enugu in Nigeria, his native name is Ekperedike Onyeje and his English name is Johnson Sreve Francis, his got three date of births, 1/1/1983, 5th november and 25th November, not sure if he is 25,27,28 or 31 but he hates children,though he will tell you he loves children. He will drain your bank accounts out and just be very careful, cos ive just separated from this guy who ive known for three years, last year i visited him couple a times during the year, i got him into Australia but once we lived together as husband and wife, he changed completely. Be CAREFUL GIRLS. Oh and he liked wearing my clothes and shoes too… he likes the clubs aswell, he drives a white camry wagon around the sunshine coast. be very careful, he is a christian charmer and great at convincing and turning on the water works.
I think I have been scammed, the e-mail address is morganbarton01yahoo.com – name Morgan Barton living in Nigeria, working on an MBA but originally from the U.K. Help!
Has anyone heard of Frank Aglio? Supposedly he left Italy at the age of 17 with his mother and he lives in Hicksville, NY. Went to Nigeria to build a bridge and should be coming home soon.
I was [censored]ed into this romance scam fortunately common sence kicked in and I caught onto his or her game…this person messaged me on facebook ..wanted to me to confirm him as a friend(had a very attractive photo) so I started talking to him.He told me he loved me and wanted to be with me forever..he said all the right things and told me exactly what I wanted to here..he said he was from the U.K. was self employed selling and buying art and paintings. Said he was in Nigeria for business.After about a week he said he wasn’t feeling well…he had to go to the hospital,then he stated he needed a operation becuase the antibiotics wasn’t working.He said the so called Docter would accept a western union money payment.gave me the address to send it to zip code 23401 in Nigeria.thats when i did a search on google for the so called hospital..of course it didn’t exist and on the very same page that I googled there was info on a romance scam from Nigeria.
Beware of a scammer named Bill Anderson. He is a con-artist and a thief! Claims to be a 50-yr. old engineer from California, Los Angeles doing business in Nigeria. He found me on a dating site. We had contact for 2 months and then he asked me for money. He used a UK hotmail address. WATCH OUT!!!!
Beware of Tristan Freeman. He is very fast and has a control issue. One word describes him; charisma. Personally I enjoyed his pleas for financial help. I pray he has whats coming to him.
His email address is tristanf1961yahoo.com.
has anyone heard of a Brian Gate email address handsome.caringyahoo.com. he’s scamming my firend and she’s convinced he is real. She already sent him $1600 and he needs $8500 more to release $150K he has tied up in the UK. She is crazy about the scumbag for some reason because he says all the right thing, writes her poetry and plays music for he. He is also proficient at EVERYTHING and she believes it all.
just wanted to warn people about:
montserrat lawrence “mooolaw@hotmail .com” / alethia echaniz “echanizalethia@ hotmail.com”
possibly fake family members include Diego Lawrence and Camilo Lawrence.
DO NOT SEND HER MONEY!
she may say: “she got mugged and the money you sent her for a webcam was stolen” “she has blood cancer” “she didn’t want to video skype with you because she didn’t want you to see how sick she was” “her brother or cousin is in trouble with people over drugs and they threatened them in a parking lot” “she tried to cut herself and almost died because you online broke up with her” ?she?s actually not montserrat, she?s really alethia who was pretending to be montserrat because she just wanted to know what it was like to feel pretty? etc etc etc.
these scams happen a lot. run away screaming! or if not at least —- two way video skype is your friend !!
It is unfair and bigoted to suggest that these date scams mainly originate from Nigeria. They come from all over: Africa, Asia, Europe etc. People using these dating sites (i don’t) should always be on their guard. As you do in ‘real life’ ask for a drink, coffee etc to get to know them or if they are far away, carry on chatting and if money gets mentioned, end it there and then. You are most likely to find love offline than online
Anyone heard of James Marcus?
To Judith boles…
James I Marcus is currently scamming my mother…I have recently had to cut my mom out of my life. I believe she’s sent him around 30,000…she in a lot of trouble financially…she’s fallen into a deep depression and it’s almost like a drug addiction, but she’s addicted to sending him money. I can’t fight with her about it any longer and can’t just sit and watch her loose everything…Stay away from JAMES MARCUS! Or contact the FBI…it wouldn’t help my mom,but it would expose that alias and maybe help someone in the future
Scammer named Fred Simpson (fredsimpson276@yahoo.com).
Was on Zoosk. Said his parents died in world trade center event and his wife of 15 years cheated on him with his best friend. In UK doing business!!
Be Careful
These scammers are the shit on the bottom of my shoe. I almost got [censored]ed up by one of these jackasses. J-friends, World friends, Macth, E-Harmony, Senior Meet are just to name a few online dating sites that 80% that are potential hook ups are scammers, the other 15% are men with issues, 4% are ex-cons, can’t hold a job for some reason, lie about age/looks and income, and the 1% might be sincere but are in between a realtionship and just testing the market. Can someone say PUKE! I started playing poker, Texas Hold Em. Let me tell you there are men to meet in the poker rooms from all over the world. These guys are cool, there not looking for money, but ladies that like to play poker and flirt at the tables. that is ladies of all ages. The average scammer wants money without working for it. The poker guys usually are men who have jobs and money, but like to play poker without spending their real money.
i’m like a magnet for these assholes. i’v got a list of names for you all. mary janet, maryjanet53@yahoo. stella williams sluv00yahoo.com. jessica crenzy jcrenzyyahoo.com. if they’re in africa forget about them people, they aren’t real, unless you’re bored and like to mess with them like me. the more time they spend trying to con someone who knows they’re lying. the less time they have for someone who will fall for it.the only way they will ever stop is if it becomes unprofitable. so lets flood them with people who waste their time and send no money.
Can someone please tell me if you know of a guy named Colin Scott pretending to be from UK but claiming he has assets in Malaysia. He’s been contacting my sister and his email sounded like a Nigerian scam.
I am 43 years old, and have been on several dating sites, but met Nigerian scammers on all but one. I have a special way to nose out the ones who seem attractive, but put up a red flag. Mind you, I am not saying this would work for everyone, but in some cases, it’s worth a try. Because I am black, I am not totally uncomfortable about going into a racist rampage against Nigeria or South Africa.. wherever they claim to live or “be stuck in” . A real person will be angry, and shocked, on the verge of deleting me. A faker will simply try to convince me how safe Nigeria/Ghana/Benin is, and perhaps try to convince me to travel to Nigeria or wherever. Now, this could backfire, if the person is real. But then again, if you are willing to risk it, then it means you should just give in to that gut instinct.
Phillip Ventin is a Nigerian scammer. Claims his wife and son were killed in a plane crash in Nov. 2001 and that he is a sculptor working in Nigeria and needs money to leave the country. This Nigerian scammer goes by the name of Phillip Ventin. phillipventin@y mail.com. phone 234 7042808220
Phillip Ventin had contacted me last year. Emailed me on Facebook and indicated that his wife and son died in the fatal plane crash in 2001 leaving from New York to San Domingo. He built up the trust first and then asked me for money to leave the country and come to Canada. His has MSN Messenger and used phillipventin@h otmail.com as well as phillipventin@y mail.com. He is the most devious scammer of all. Sent me many pictures and indicated they were taken in Spain with his friend, David. He has been scamming women for sometime now and hopefully something will be done about him and he will be removed from dating sites. He was on the dating site on Facebook, Zoosk and “Are You Interested”. His cell phone that he gave me at that time was 704-319-2556. I contacted all the friends on his friends list on Facebook, to notify them. He was speaking with a artist in Australia and a woman in Calgary. PLEASE BE AWARE OF THIS MAN!!!
It makes me sick to think that these nigerian scammers (like Phillip Ventin) make, supposedly a good living scamming women who are just trying to find love. These scammers are very good at what they do – some of the stories they tell you are quite believable and once they know you have fallen for them, they ask you for money and promise to pay you back when you meet in person. Yeah…right! I think dating websites should post warnings about scammers on every page and on every email from any member.
Kim, he contacted me too last year. I feel so sorry for the guy whose photos he had been using. What made it believable was that he had not just a couple of photos, but like you said, many, many photos taken at different places – a few taken on a camel in a desert. I hope you didn’t send this low-life jerk any money. Thank God I didn’t.
Phillip Ventin – Yes…he has lots and lots of pictures taken in different times and places, but what he forgot to realize is the picture with the blue jean jacket if you look at the bottom corner of it there is a woman’s blonde hair, which indicates that this person is with someone. He has cropped his pictures and thinks Canadian women are stupid. I am sure he has many alias names that he uses. He also indicated to me about a friend in Greece by name of Frank and there was a woman Olga on Facebook with him, which I believe was Phillip Ventin himself. So he may be portraying male and female scammers.
I to was contacted by Phillip Ventin , was asking me for money also , calming he was in a business bid and would pay me back . I am no fool thank god . He was a very swift talker . I really hope noone falls for this . It sickens me that people play off of others emotions .
Phillip Ventin – He indicated to me that he has lost his job…his place because he owed the art company that he worked for money and that he had to come up with $17,500.00 in order to get $600,000.00 US. It was all a lie and I didn’t fall for it. Said he wanted to come to Canada. He has many pictures and different stories from what I have read on the sites. If you Google his name, he also has many alias that he goes by. I do hope they have kicked him off Facebook, Linked In, and the other sites that he has visited. I believe he has also portrayed a woman by the name of Olga on Facebook as well. I just hope no woman falls for his scamming and are wise to his smooth talking.
I would love some info on David Daniel Ramsey. Ouch. I fell in love with the man and want to know if he is the same one that you ladies are speaking of. This means so much to me. Please respond to melindamobleyba ilbonds@hotmail .com. Anonymously is fine. Please help me, okay? I don’t need this.
The bottom line is…whether it is David Ramsay or Phillip Ventin or any man or woman who asks you for money before meeting you in person…99.9%, he/she is a SCAM. No “normal” person will tell you that they love you almost instantly after the 2nd or 3rd email and no decent person will ask you for money.
These Nigerian scammer scumbags all have the same sorry story. Most of them are widowers whose wives died in a plane crash or sickness – some are divorced. Their parents are either dead or they have no contact with family. They will send you love poems and tell you they love you and say you are the person that they have been searching for all their lives – before they even meet or talk to you. They will send you many pictures (that were stolen off the internet) to make you believe they are real. They will have an excuse as to why the video on skype is not working. Soon, they will tell you they have run into financial problems or got robbed and need $$ to leave Nigeria or wherever. These scumbags are very, very good at what they do – they might even have scammer training schools in Nigeria – who knows.
The last 2 posts were right on. I’m in law enforcement and was able to make contact with the “real” David Ramsey. Great guy, retired. Had no idea that someone had stolen his identity. Same story. Watch yourself. Check your IP addresses. Check every source available to you. The same old school advice applies, if it’s too good to be true, it is. My story is a bit different. I wasn’t out “looking” for love. This guy kept showing up in my e-mail through Match.com. I wasn’t a member. I didn’t actively pursue him. Things just didn’t add up for me, but since I’m a man hater…sorry guys, I just didn’t buy it. I followed through and made the reports necessary to apprehend this man, should he ever show up in the U.S. Which he will not. There’s too much money to be made in South Africa, among other places. He claimed to be Italian, and now that I’ve done a bit of research, he most certainly isn’t. Please be careful out there if this what you choose to do. Stick with friends of friends. YUCK!
Beware of Nigerian scammer going by the name of Bruce G Hamman, emails warmsmile200@ya hoo.com, or warmsmile200@gm ail.com. Warsmile200 also Yahoo messenger name. HE IS WITHOUT A DOUBT A SCAMMER. Using pics of a middle age white man with glasses. Claims he has a 15 yr old daughter and was in Lagos area buying antiquities as this is his business. He seems pretty well educated (told me had a degree in Aerospace Eng), although not sure if that’s true, but his English and grammar are very good. He is a professional and knows exactly what to write you to make him fall in love with him, plus of course says can’t live w/out one and wants to marry and be happy forever more.
I met Paul on a Christians singles site christiansingle s.com. He seemed so real. A doctor and very wealthy. Has great english and a great picture. I feel in love with him over a few months. Then he had me lie for him to get out of Nigeria, supposedly? And asked me for money because he was arrented in england once he got back. It was supposed to be because of taxes or something. He also got hurt and needed money to pay a doctor. He has even had other people contact me. A guy named John Paul who is supposed to work at some bank or govt or something in order to do a bank transfer. I wanted to believe all this was for real but now I’m starting to doubt it and then searched it and found this. What do I do? Do I report this to the authorities?
Chris Messer, widow, ten year old daughter is a scammer, posing as a Petroleum engineer. Tell everyone please. These people are disgraceful.
Friend being contacted by a Frank Edward Baker – claims to be an interior designer on contract in Nigeria. Says he’s coming “home” next week. We can find no trace of him or his company or any ref to him ANYWHERE. His story is that he has a broken heart, family dead, claims to be Italian /French – I know, with a name like Baker? How do we check him out? He just seems too good to be true, and when they seem too good they usually are.
Why no Frank Bakers ANYWHERE?
Why no contact except on Skype without video?
Why no text?
Pictures seem a little too hunky for a 40yr old man…
Any suggestions?
My situation began with connecting singles.com : got contacted twice, however two profiles were made, sharing pic’s WHICH WERE IDENTICAL ! The website Admin, told me a proxy server was used to cloak there location. I am actively trying to find the guy in the photo, looks like webcam pic’s and possibly dig. cell phone ? His photo’s increased within 90 days of first contact. You are all right about web sites such as Meetlocals, Xdating etc.. Nobody cares that these bums are deceiving people that they care about them, steal there money, there pictures and their identities. This conduct unfortunately falls through the cracks of International Law. I myself did not suffer a loss, the guy’s predator did want me to appear on webcam on Yahoo ( no doubt to pilfer another picture ). I am sorry that I cannot offer a name or email address , C.S. website had removed the profile and email. If you want a date and seek marriage: Match Maker international is your BEST bet ( back ground checks).
I recently found yet another scammer on a dating site. My suspicions were raised when after one message which included an e mail address she became an inactive member on the site. So had actually paid to join so could message. – I wounder how many ” SHE ” messaged.
Her name on Matchmaking4men was Mona Reagan. Claimed to be Native American. Girl next door pretty, but the wording was the normal stuff I have seen from scammers – all about soul mate, etc.
The e mail add given was Monareaganaol.com.
I messaged “her” just to play along and see what came back – Shock !!!! there is some horror story in Africa that she has to go back for, but would like my phone number – Oh i dont think so !!!
” my mother was among the unlucky one on the bomb attacked in her UN office in Nigeria and is still critically ill in the hospital at Abuja ”
Be carefull people they are getting better but can still usually spot them!
Once again MONA REAGAN – is yet another African con on the dating sites
Thanks rob I am at this instant in converstation with monareagonaol.com And shes spinning the same old story as what you said as well wants my mobile number which she is not going to get:) Just an update she as just changed a email address she says because she thinks someone is trying to hack her or something. This is her new address mona_reagan@yah oo.ca and allso she as given me her number to call her which I don’t intend to which is +234 803 516 5726. She allso instantly deactivated her profile on the dating site here in the uk. I have found most women that have contacted me on the dating sites over here have turned out to be scammers so I intend to stop wasting my money on dating sites now and if they go but its their fault for not keeping their sites clean of these people by not looking into them to make sure they are real people. After all dating sites are not cheap these days so they should really look after their customers.
Anyone know a geologist and CEO of a company called Bellntg.His name is Samuel Panzio, who is a widower with 2 children a daughter named Jesscia and a son Willliam. He lived in Buffalo but had to go to Scotland and then to Cameroon. Asked for money to release his equipment from Cameroon customs, then for his kids as the nanny ran out of money and then for expert who were need to clean up a accident in cameroon. Please be careful very charming and loves to make you feel wonderful, sends flowers ,chocolates and teddy bears. Beware
This “guy” Michael Nelson, Michaelnelsn@yahoo.com, claims to be in South Africa and wants to come and see my dear friend here in the US. He tells her that he loves her. They have never seen each other but his love is unconditional. He needs some cash right away so he can complete his flight arrangements. We know he is a scammer, not a good one, but she still hopes.
Anyone else might have been contacted by this “man”? Please advise.
Same issue, more info.
Yes, we have been trying to locate him in Africa. I hope High Tech may lead us to his location as long as he keeps on using the mobile number of record.
We called him, he answered and asked if we were the police.
He will probably disappear under the name of Nelson and re-appear with a new.
I’ve been approached by so many scammers now that I know immediately they are not who they say they are. I just thank God I haven’t been a victim to these low life scums.
1. They say they live near you (but sometimes its also in a different state). But all of a sudden they have to travel abroad for one thing or another.
2. They sweet talk to you right away coming on strong. Within matter of a week or 2 they talk about marriage an how much they are looking for love and want to marry you as soon as they get back home.
3. They ask you for money and come up with numerous reasons why. DON’T…. they are just using innocent people who are looking for love.
4. They use broken English or if you ask them a question and they avoid answering it because they don’t know our customs….another good sign they not from around ur neck of the woods.
Wonderful article! We will be linking to this great content on our site.
Keep up the good writing.